Joe Maddon and first-base coach Brandon Hyde send a mass text to Chicago Cubs players letting them know the upcoming game's lineup well ahead of time.

"Guys are programmed for it," Hyde said. "If I'm late with it, I'll get a sarcastic response from various guys. 'How can I prepare if I don't know if I'm playing?' Stuff like that. Then someone else will bust that guy. And they go back and forth a little."

Maddon believes strongly in letting regulars know the night before if they won’t be playing. He doesn't want them to be surprised and it allows for a mental break.

"If you don't tell a player the day before he has the day off, then he doesn't have a day off," Maddon explained. "He';l get up and go through this whole routine and get ready and then find out he's not in the lineup. He actually might be mad. I think it's great we do it this way."

Maddon also values the team sending group messages amongst one another.

"[Anthony] Rizzo and [Dexter] Fowler are the main responders," Hyde said. "And a sneaky one, you would never guess, is Addison Russell. He might send a little jab toward the older guys, and I love it. They love it, too. You don’t expect it because he’s so quiet."